Choose 'Scholarship Opportunities' from ACS Links on the Left

Internship Opportunities Summer 2015 & More

Latest News from Dr. Timothy Matney's Archaeological Team

UA-led team says ancient bookkeeping system survived well after writing invented

An archaeological dig in Turkey directed by Timothy Matney, professor of anthropology and classical studies, has found evidence that an ancient form of bookkeeping employing small clay tokens (pictured above) continued to be used at least 2,000 years after the advent of writing.

The analysis, based on artifacts excavated over 17 summers at the Ziyaret Tepe site in southeastern Turkey, contradicts scientists' earlier conclusion that the tokens quickly faded from use as humans began using reeds to make inscriptions on clay tablets.

Matney has directed the Ziyaret Tepe Archaeological Expedition since it began in 1997. His international team of collaborators includes researchers from England, Germany and Turkey.

A report on their finding appears in the June 2014 issue of the Cambridge Archaeological Journal. Story continues online.

Campaign raises record $46M in private support
Student scholarships are one of the many areas that will benefit from UA's latest record-breaking fund-raising year. Gifts are critical to expanding UA's commitment to world-class teaching and research.